Sourdough Oatmeal Walnut Bread

Sourdough oatmeal bread slices

The first sourdough bread I made was from  Miriam Kresh’s recipe at Israeli Kitchen. Since then I’ve made it numerous times, especially when I am hosting a meeting or party. I’ve recently made some healthy adjustments including cutting out sugar and substituting olive oil. I often add nuts, and substitute spelt for some of the […]

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Recipe: Unstuffed Rutabagas or Turnips

basket of rutabagas

Thanks to US reader Tanya who sent me this original recipe back in February, writing: I hope spring has come to Israel. Here we are still buried under a foot of snow and the ground is frozen hard. Rutabagas are still quietly sitting in the basement, nice and firm and ready to sustain us for […]

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Less Is More: Review of Magimix 5200XL Food Processor

Yellow squash processed into cubes by Magimix5200XL

A few months ago, the metal chopping blade for my Magimix 5100 food processor overheated and melted for the second time. The first time, I salvaged the machine. Since I was generally happy with the machine, already my second, and the others on the market did not appear to be higher quality, I decided to […]

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Good to the Last Drop: 10 Tips for Getting that Last Bit of Food

boy licking spatula with chocolate

In my post, Why You Should Finish Everything on Your Plate, I explain why scraping the last bits of food from the dish is more than just about saving money. A cleaner plate means less time picking out bits from the filters in your sink and dishwasher, and saves soap and water when washing. I don’t think we should teach kids to finish their food when they aren’t hungry, but we should train them to take a little less than they think they will eat until they get better at estimating quantities.

We deal with food remains when cooking and baking too: Bowls, measuring cups, jars and bottles with remnants of food. Here are my favorite techniques for getting that last bit into your recipe.

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Whole-Wheat Pretzel Recipe

homemade pretzel children craft

Summer vacation is here and I am always looking out for fun activities. Yosefa called yesterday and suggested we do a baking project with the kids: pretzels! This recipe calls for conventional yeast but when I have more time I will attempt to make it with sourdough. The kids enjoyed kneading the dough and molding […]

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Chicken with Carrots, Sage and Black Lentils

black lentils for chicken and sage recipe

I don’t usually cook chicken during the week but I was in a rush one day last week and had a fresh whole chicken on hand. This came out so good I had to share! The sage and the black lentils lifted the chicken onto a whole different plane. If you’ve never had black lentils, […]

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The Story of the Melted Food Processor

Magimix food processor stem damage

Check out my review of the Magimix 5200XL. If you can love an inanimate object, then I love my Magimix food processor. Intensely. It’s a useful, durable, well-designed machine.  As Norene Gilletz wrote in her classic book, The Pleasures of Your Food Processor, the virtue of a quality processor is its ability to stop when […]

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How to Spot Insect Infestation in Dried Beans with Pictures

whole soaked bean with insect hole

A few days ago, I wrote about the reasons that beans may not get hard after cooking. Today I’ll address a different issue that also relates to beans that may have not been stored carefully: infestation. To avoid problems of infestation of grains and legumes, first follow the suggestions in my earlier post on how […]

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Why Are My Beans Still Hard after Cooking?

Have you ever soaked and cooked a batch of beans, only to find that they never really got soft? The main reason for beans that are still hard after cooking is the quality of the beans. Drying beans preserves them for a long time, but not forever.  Even if you just got them, they may […]

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Unstuffed Rutabaga or Turnip Casserole

raw turnips in open air market

Reader Ms. Krieger was experimenting with rutabaga, and developed this recipe for Passover. She thought it would work equally well with turnips, and suggested I add it to my links for turnip recipes. Recipe: Unstuffed Rutabaga or Turnip Casserole Ingredients 3 large turnips (or 2 large rutabagas) 1 lb. (1/2 kg.) ground beef 1 cup […]

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